The out-of-court consent order is between Wanaka property development company Infinity Investment Group Holdings Ltd and Queenstown developers Remarkables Park Ltd and neighbouring Five Mile Holdings Ltd (in receivership), with the council as respondent.
The Environment Court-approved decision, dated July 17, regards plan change 24: affordable housing as the right way for developers to provide affordable housing after years of discussion and legal arguments since the plan change was notified in 2007.
Judge Jackson's consent order also avoids another hearing.
Council policy and planning general manager Philip Pannett said yesterday plan change 24 was still in the district plan, still required developers to assess what impact they were having on housing affordability and still required the developers to deal with it if necessary.
''What the plan change as notified had was one method of doing that, but it was always open for developers to choose other methods.''
''The consented version's now taken that one method that was in there out, but still requires that process to be gone through.''
Asked if the developers were trying to get out of providing affordable housing, Mr Pannett said most developers in the district were already providing for affordable housing, whether it was by contributions going via the council to the Queenstown Lakes Community Housing Trust or land going to the trust.
Stakeholder agreements between developers and the council on behalf of the trust enabled it to build Nerin Sq in Lake Hayes Estate and shared ownership arrangements around the district, he said.
An advantage of the trust was its long-term retention of affordable housing to keep the dwellings affordable beyond the initial tenants as property prices around the housing rose.
Remarkables Park as an existing zoned development predates the plan change and it was considered unfair to apply the plan change after the event, Mr Pannett said.
''The Hope (Housing Our People in our Environment) strategy said there were two parts of the housing affordability problem - one was 'current and past' and the other would be 'future'.
''Plan change 24 is dealing with future growth and the past is being picked up by council and an example is Suffolk St [Arrowtown] land where council is meeting its obligations to try to deal with past affordability issues.''
The residential part of plan change 19: Frankton Flats would deal with affordable housing at Five Mile.
Mr Pannett said he understood the concept involved relatively intensive apartment dwellings in the residential area which would fulfil the need for affordable housing.
